Hospital, Celgene Fight Over Royalties for Cancer Drugs

Dispute Highlights Tensions That Can Affect Research Collaborations

A dispute playing out in federal court over a blockbuster cancer treatment underscores the tensions that can surface in an area of growing importance to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies: their research collaborations and licensing agreements with academia.

The case centers on two drugs from Celgene Corp.—Revlimid and Pomalyst—that have helped extend the lives of patients with multiple myeloma, a rare blood cancer. The...